I would love to give these guys a try however I would want to have some info as to how different are they from African violets. The violets grow and bloom for me happily. Do they have different requirements as far as light and fertilizer goes or is it pretty much the same?? Any help from the gardeners growing these would be greatly appreciated...
Thank you all!! Happy Holidays and a floriferous New Year !!!

I grow many varieties of episcias and they are pretty similar to AV's. I grow them in the same shelves that I grow my AV's. I find they are even easier to grow, can tolerate more sun than AV's and bloom all year long. They are easy to propagate from stolons and can grow rapidly into a large plant. I am in S. Florida also so need to worry about cold temperatures since they grow well indoors all year round. You could even grow them outdoors in our zone except they would need to be brought in for the winter since they cannot tolerate any wind or cold. They are beautiful plants with great variations in the color and texture of the leaves and also the different color of the blooms. I am sure you can do very well with them if you grow AV's successfully.

Thanks for the quick reply chiquib !!! Now I'm really excited about it. The AVs are beautiful but the Episcias seem to have so many more types of foliage variations. Since you are down here as well do you mind me asking where have you gotten your plants ???

Roly, episcias are grown for their foliage many times. I have one that was called "Chocolate Soldier" by the one who gave it to me. I have had it since the Fall of '98. I also have Pink Panther, and Sun Dog. They grow about like AV's. Luciee {;^)